The present invention relates to an apparatus to be used by women prior to and/or after childbirth for dilating the muscles and the tendinous and connective tissue of the female pelvic diaphragm so that these tissue structures will become so elastic that tearing of the perineum during childbirth or during operative interventions, such as, e.g., episiotomy, can be avoided.
Furthermore, the apparatus can be used for training the muscles of the pelvic diaphragm after childbirths and for general muscle toning.
Prior art apparatuses for training the muscles of the female pelvic diaphragm and the vaginal wall muscles include apparatuses which are operated pneumatically. Such apparatuses are disclosed in, e.g., DE-B-2, 643,514, DE-C-2,737,771, U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,449 and DK patent application No. 2675/81. The disadvantages associated with pneumatically operated apparatuses include particularly the difficulties experienced by the user in providing the apparatuses with the prescribed, exact dilation degree through a manually actuated pump mechanism in order to obtain the intended optimum and uniform treatment of the muscles as well as the problems of maintaining the dilation degree during the treatment. Besides, the construction of these apparatuses is relatively complicated, as they consist of mutually separated parts, viz. a dilator and a pump connected via a flexible tube system.
Furthermore, from U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,685,474, 1,737,488 and 4,566,465 disclose mechanical apparatuses for the determination of the inner dimensions of hollow organs and the muscles thereof, e.g., in the human body, and/or for the expansion and optional retraction of same.
Just like the pneumatic apparatuses mentioned above, these mechanical apparatuses also consist of several mutually connected main parts which, however, form separate parts as far as construction is concerned, viz. an expandable portion for insertion into the relevant and often relatively deep-lying organ inside the human body, a flexible tube having a movable push and pull mechanism for controlling the expandable portion and a control device located outside the body.
However, none of these mechanical apparatuses is suitable for training the muscles of the female pelvic diaphragm and they all require the assistance of a person other than the user for operating the apparatus and entering the apparatus in the correct and approximately safe positioning inside an organ of the body.
While the apparatus according to U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,474 exclusively concerns a measuring apparatus and not an actual apparatus for treating the muscles of inner organs the apparatus according to U.S. Pat. No. 1,737,488 concerns a dilator for use in dilating, e.g., the esophagus, uterus, rectum, etc. The expandable portion of the apparatus has a circular cross section and consists of a plurality of radially movable segmental sections which do not form a coherent outer surface. In direction towards the axis of the apparatus, the individual segmental section has a relatively complex profile with guide recesses and inclined surfaces abutting the axially displaceable conical members inside the apparatus so that concurrently with the displacement of the conical members the segmental section can be moved outwards and inwards in relation to the axis of the apparatus. The axial displacement of the conical members is effected by a push and pull mechanism which is controlled via the flexible tube by the control device located outside the body. As far as construction and operation are concerned, the apparatus is complicated, and due to the outer shape of its expandable portion, the apparatus is not suitable for training the muscles of the female pelvic diaphragm. This is further emphasized by the two contraction rings mounted in the expandable portion which is caused to contract by the rings during use and not, as is the case with the apparatus according to the present application, by the actuations from surrounding muscles which are being exercised. Besides, the apparatus is obviously not suitable for being operated by the user herself.
As far as construction and operation are concerned, the apparatus according to AS-A-4,566,465 has a complexity similar to that of the apparatus according to U.S. Pat. No. 1,737,488 but it differs from the latter in that it concerns a measuring probe for determining the radial strains in a sphincter of an inner organ. Due to its outer shape and functioning the expandable portion, the probe head is just as unsuitable for training the muscles of the female pelvic diaphragm as the apparatus according to U.S. Pat. No. 1,737,488.
Hence, it is the object of the present invention to remedy the above mentioned drawbacks of the prior art apparatuses by providing an apparatus for training the muscles of the female pelvic diaphragm, which apparatus avoids the defects of known apparatus and which can be easily handled by the user without assistance.
The invention will now be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.